How have the responsiblities of police officers changed over time?

Running Head : EVOLUTION OF POLICE RESPONSIBILITIES

How Have the Responsibilities of

Police Officers Changed Overtime

Abstract

The presence of police enforcers in a community or even in a state is almost a necessity . The whole idea of having police officers around makes the citizenry or the community in general safe and secure in their own homes . The time old dependency towards police officers as keeper of safety and security emanates from the principle that the responsibilities of these police officers support the core idea of society 's law and . The

police officers ' role in the community as the protector and the person charged for the enforcement of law developed over the years . Indeed , from being Praetorian Guard of the ancient Rome to the modern law enforcers of today , the responsibilities of these law enforcers have incredibly increased , expand or otherwise changed in its generic sense . But what brought about these changes ? Is it the society which dictates the changes in the responsibilities of law enforcers ? Or is it the society 's leader ? Or is it the society 's law itself ? Considering the great differences between the past and the present responsibilities of police officers have , this will discuss what have brought these changes

How Have the Responsibilities of

Police Officers Changed Overtime

Law enforcement is as age old as the law which it tries to enforce Thus , the changes and developments in the history of law may be considered as the direct link in the development of law enforcement . In discussing therefore how the changes in the responsibilities of law enforcers came about , this report will divide the era of law enforcement to the 1 ) Primitive and Ancient era 2 ) City-State Era 3 ) Progressive and Modern Day Era

The Police in the Primitive Era

Enforcement of law and policing in the pre-civilized communities is guided by the Tribal System . In this system , the tribal chief is the repository of all executive , legislative and judicial power . This tribal chief has enormous power to give tasks to his tribal members including serving as his or his family 's body guard . Considering that the law enforced in this era is retaliatory , the aggrieved family members are the one who capture and give punishment to the accused

In ancient Egypt , the Pharaoh is regarded as the leader of the community . Because war at such time is common , the pharaoh appoints a bodyguard to protect him and his family from assassinations . Other than this , the pharaoh also who appoints persons who are considered as public officers who performs police functions . Their weapon and symbol of authority is a staff topped by a metal knob engraved with the king 's name (Wrobleski and Hess , 2006 ,

.5 . Historians believe that the police baton of the modern day police origin from this staff of the Egyptian thus , creating the common notion that the Egypt , being the first known civilization , was a police state

Thus , from the foregoing , the responsibilities of persons regarded as the police...